Distaster Recovery After Hurricane Sandy

If you lived through or still are living through the effects of Hurricane Sandy, you know that many disaster recovery plans failed for the simple reason that they did not adequately consider the worst case scenarios that actually developed.

So while the weather people did a very good job of predicting the confluence of at least two major storm systems and the potential storm surges, many major institutions were still apparently caught short when water flooded out their basements and first floors where emergency generators were located. 

The extent of gas shortages in the New York and New Jersey area has brought rationing back for the first time in more than three decades. There’s enough finger-pointing to go around about who is to blame for the slowness of the recovery in some areas. Rather, the point of this blog is to have GSE operators around the world think about what lessons can be learned from the hurricane's aftermath. And whether their disaster recovery plans be improved upon in light of what occurred in the Northeast United States.

For example, how did electric GSE fare the storm compared to diesel-fueled? Looking at the tire-high water at LaGuardia made me wonder whether one was better able to handle the water surge than the other. I would certainly welcome feedback from operators who experienced the surge.